Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Kids love a place to hide, retreat and get away from the hustle and bustle of our busy lives as much as we do. After seeing under the stairs play areas all over the Internet, I went to my neighbor's house, to ask her husband how I could make a hole in the wall and see if we could do it at our house. While everyone slept that night, I could not stand the anticipation anymore, so at 1:00 a.m. I gathered the necessary tools and went to work.

First, I scored the wall with a utility knife in an "X" just as my neighbor instructed me, then I took a screwdriver and hammer and pounded until the hole was big enough for a flashlight. I looked under there, but really couldn't see enough to know if it was possible to "play" under there.

When we sold our other house, we had a contractor come and finish some of our my projects, starting with the play area under the stairs.

At first, Owen did not like it and never played in there, then I installed these 12x12 interlocking mats from Walmart and now he plays in there all the time.

View from the stairs

Love these metal baskets on the wall to organize toys

His new little Adirondack chair on clearance for $2.50 at Walmart - S-C-O-R-E

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Sometimes we cross paths with someone and have an instant connection, a great conversation and take something away. Often it is just for that moment, but sometimes we get to develop an unexpected friendship that encourages both people to seek God and grow into who He is calling them to be. That is my friend Donna Hyder.She had a table set up at a Christmas marketplace for her newly published Picture Prayer Journal a few years ago. I was drawn to her table, her journal and her. I had remembered hearing her speak a few years before at a conference I attended and I could still remember her testimony. I also asked if she would come to my town and talk about the Picture Prayer Journal, she said she would and she did.We have had short visits and long phone calls and are both blessed to be a part of the Come Alive - Created to Create 2017 Conference, so have been seeing each other a bit more. We live two hours apart, but that has not stopped this friendship from blossoming.Recently, she I invited myself to her house for her dreamboarding class. After my pastor handed me a copy ofIn a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day andChase the Lion by Mark Batterson, I knew I had to take Donna’s class. She had a welcome sign in her entryway for me and a snack plate prepared. There were gluesticks, scissors and magazines on the table. We spent hours talking, praying, sharing and dreaming, not only together, but with our Father. I left without a finished dreamboard, but came home and finished just a few days later.

She sent me these pictures yesterday as a thank you for a pillow I gave her recently.

Do you not just want to curl up in that chair and dream!

Donna is a dreamer and I mean that with all due respect and admiration. Mark Batterson says, “If your dream doesn’t scare you it’s too small.” She dreams big dreams and you want to dream big dreams when you are around her.

The Collins dictionary says, “If you describe someone as a dreamer, you mean that they spend a lot of time thinking about and planning for things that they would like to happen but which are improbable or impractical.” Which is true, but God!

In every dream journey, there comes a moment

when you have to quit living as if the purpose of life

is to arrive safely at death.

You have to go after a dream

that is destined to fail

without divine intervention.

- Mark Batterson, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day

God has placed dreams within all of our hearts and being around other dreamers is imperative. It encourages us to pursue those dreams, to help keep those dreams alive when discouragement comes in or someone to pick us up if we faceplant and gives us someone to rejoice with when it happens. I thank God for Donna and her vision/His vision for dreaming.

What are your dreams? Are they scary? Invite your Father in to dream with you and grab a friend and go for it!

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

My motto is, "There is no excuse too small to get together with friends." I live in a small town in middle Georgia and we do not have a lot of choices when it comes to dining out, so when something new comes to town or a town near us, it is a topic of conversation and everyone is ready to try it. I heard about a new place to eat, Wild Daisy Farm, in the next town over and that is all I needed to organize a lunch with the precious ladies on my street.

It was just a short trip to Molena from our neighborhood, which we used to catch up on family and town happenings and our latest and upcoming home projects. We arrived early and were seated immediately. Wild Daisy Farm Bed & Breakfast is in a beautiful brick building in the town center.

Beautiful antiques and decor greet you as soon as you walk in the door

There is something to see at every turn and at every table

Beauty is everywhere in this restaurant

No space is wasted

The ladies and I all ordered the sunflower sprout salad and bacon and three cheese quiche. Jenny, the owner and chef, immediately brought fresh bread to our table with a sliver of cream cheese. The salad was served with either homemade raspberry or vinagarette dressing. I had never had sunflower sprouts, but I must say there were delicious and made a beautiful presentation on the place which also included dried cranberries, mandarin oranges and nuts. The quiche was also cooked to perfection. We finished our meal with homemade strawberry cake. Other dessert options were lemon cake, gooey brownie a la mode and an assortment of cobblers. While we were eating Jenny told us that three guests rooms were available to tour today, so as soon as we finished eating we headed upstairs.

What awaited us was breathtaking.

First bedroom at the top of the stairs:

Beautiful architectural detail in the hall that is probably part of old farm equipment.

Bedroom two:

Bedroom three:

If you are ever near Molena, Georgia this is a must stop and see and eat kind of place. The food, staff and atmosphere was amazing.

My neighbors and I had a great time and I hope this will be the beginning of something new.

About Me

I'm a daughter of the Most High God, wife to Michael and mom to five awesome kids. I love transforming anything I can get my hands on. Your trash is my treasure. I love the hunt, the find and the transformation process.
It is a blessing to have a space at a local antique store to share my creations and sell them too. What you see here will end up there (if I don't keep it). I'm grateful for the opportunity to do what I love.
Through this process I am learning so much about me and who I was created to be.